He's been to 334 matches and once he rode a bicycle 1,600 km from India to Lahore to see his hero bat.

Earlier this week Mr Gautam was at Wankhede stadium for one of Tendulkar's last training sessions before the final test

As Tendulkar was getting on the team bus, he called Mr Gautam over.

"Sachin was calling 'Sudhir! Sudhir! Come!'" he said.

In the bus, Tendulkar opened his bag; inside was a brand new pair of bright orange sneakers - a gift for his most dedicated fan.

Tendulkar even got Mr Gautam's shoe size correct.

While Tendulkar was in Kolkata for his penultimate test earlier this month, back in Mumbai, the man responsible for giving him his first big break at age 14, former Cricket Club of India selector Milind Rege, woke up to a text message from his former charge.

When Mr Shrisat went to visit Tendulkar at the batsman's Mumbai home four years ago, he stood at the gate and asked one of Tendulkar's personal assistants to tell him he had come to visit.

The assistant said he was busy, but Mr Shrisat insisted he tell Tendulkar he had come to say hello.

It wasn't long before the batsman bolted through his front door and down to the gate and said "Hello Sir", while looking respectfully at the ground by his former teacher's feet, unable to make eye contact.

"He has earned a lot of fame in cricket but as a human being there is no change in his attitude, it is as he was in the school days," Mr Shrisat said.